PORTLAND, Ore. --- Rey Ortiz scored in the first half, Eric de Graaf found the back of the net in the second, and the Pilots were stellar on defense and in goal as Portland earned a 2-1 win over the No. 25 Seattle Redhawks on Friday night at Merlo Field. The win opened the 2017 Nike Portland Invitational, which happened in front of an overflowing student section.
 
For the sophomore de Graaf, it's the first career goal, and it came in impressive fashion. He received a pass near the left touch line in the 64th minute, made his way around and through a couple of defenders, before hammering a shot from about 20 yards out past the Seattle U keeper. At the time, it gave the Pilots a 2-0 lead, and it would prove to be huge.
 
Because less than a minute later, the Redhawks pulled one back. Ozzie Ramos found the feet of Medo Youssef with a long, low pass, into the 18. Youssef then avoided a defender and an oncoming Paul Christensen before finishing from close range. It's Youssef's first goal of the year, and it cut the deficit in half with about 25 minutes still remaining in regulation.
 
But the Pilots tightened up on defense, and Christensen, Portland's senior goalkeeper, produced some game-saving stops. In the 83rd minute, it was Youssef again who gained possession in the box, turned and drilled a well-struck shot towards the near post. Christensen was there to make the stop, and the Redhawks were unable to capitalize on the ensuing corner.
 
Moments later the clock reached 90 minutes, and the Redhawks (2-1-0) had suffered their first defeat of the season. Portland wins its second straight to move to 2-1-0 on the year.
 
"Tonight was a big step in the right direction tonight for our program," said Portland head coach Nick Carlin-Voigt. "Hats off to Seattle U, who are a very good team and a year removed from a final 16 NCAA run. I have a lot of respect for Pete Fewing, who is a classy coach and has an NCAA caliber tournament team. Having said that I was very proud of our guys tonight for finding the character to close out the game and win. It's satisfying to win when you feel you can still play better. Anytime Seattle and Portland meet for a game it's going to be a battle and you saw that tonight. After we went up 2-0 they obviously were going to have some of the ball the last 20 minutes and we played a little too deep, but we showed how to close out a lead, which shows the coaching staff the group is growing in our togetherness. Our back four came up huge and Paul Christensen showed tonight his composure and ability to make a critical save to help us grind out the game."

It was Ortiz who gave Portland the 1-0 lead with a penalty in the 28th minute. Ortiz earned the PK when he was tackled from behind inside the 18, and the sophomore stepped to the spot and calmly tucked it away to give the home side a lead they would never relinquish.
 
It's the first goal of the year for Ortiz, who entered the night as the nation's leader in assists with four.
 
Christensen had four saves for the game, while SU's Josh Adachi made one stop.
 
The UP students had their third impressive showing of the season, topping the 2,000 attendance mark for the second time this year. 2,030 students watched the Pilots upset their neighbors from the north on a warm Friday night.

"Special thanks to our amazing fans who came out tonight and really got behind the boys," added Carlin-Voigt. "We will need you back strong Monday tonight as we battle another championship level team in Fullerton at 7 p.m. at Merlo."
 
Next up for the Pilots is a visit from the Cal State Fullerton Titans to conclude the Nike Portland Invitational on Monday night. Kickoff is slated for 7 p.m.